Bangladesh: 11 injured in heavy rains at Rohingya camps

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ANKARA (AA) - More than 2000 Rohingya refugees in southern Bangladesh have been displaced after incessant rains destroyed their makeshift shelters since Monday, a UN refugee official said Friday.

Rains damaged 273 structures while 11 people were injured in Cox’s Bazar settlements where more than 900,000 Rohingya refugees live, Charlie Yaxley, spokesperson of the UN High Commissioner for Refugee (UNHCR) told reporters in Geneva according to a statement released from his office.

An estimated 350mm of rain fell in 72 hours from Monday which caused at least 26 landslides in the area, he mentioned.

The refugee body has “temporarily relocated 2,137 people, either because their shelters suffered substantial damage or as a precaution,” he added.

“In support of the humanitarian response led by the Bangladeshi authorities, UNHCR and partners made preparedness for the monsoon season a priority, including building retaining structures on hillsides, installing drainage, and building roads and bridges. Reservoirs have been also constructed to hold monsoon rains and stabilize water supplies,” he said in the statement.

The Rohingya, described by the UN as the world's most persecuted people, have faced heightened fears of attack since dozens were killed in communal violence in 2012.

According to Amnesty International, more than 750,000 Rohingya refugees, mostly women and children, have fled Myanmar and crossed into Bangladesh after Myanmar forces launched a crackdown on the minority Muslim community in August 2017.

Since Aug. 25, 2017, nearly 24,000 Rohingya Muslims have been killed by Myanmar’s state forces, according to a report by the Ontario International Development Agency.